System and method for voicemail service mobility

ABSTRACT

A method for utilizing a common voicemail box for a fixed-mobile convergence device includes automatically providing a confirmation message from a mobile client to an enterprise system in response to an enterprise call from the enterprise system being answered by a user at the mobile client. An incoming call from a calling party is connected with the mobile client in response to the confirmation message being received by the enterprise system to indicate that the enterprise call has been answered by the user at the mobile client. The incoming call is connected to a voicemail box associated with the mobile client (e.g., enterprise voicemail) in response to determining that the user did not answer the incoming call at the mobile client.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates generally to communications and, moreparticularly, to a system and method for providing a unified messagingsystem for fixed and mobile convergence devices.

BACKGROUND

Fixed and mobile convergence (FMC) solutions are being developed toenable substantially seamless interoperability of differentcommunication technologies and platforms. To this end many wirelessdevices are being manufactured to support services using more than onetype of wireless communication technology. For example, portableelectronic devices, such as cellular telephones, laptop computers andpersonal digital assistants, can include interfaces that support bothwide-area access (e.g., using cellular technologies) as well as morelocal-area access (e.g., using wireless local area network (WLAN)technologies, and/or Bluetooth technologies) to name a few.

As a further example, many enterprise networks support voice overinternet protocol (VoIP) that can run over one or more wirelessnetworks. For instance, WiFi voice networks currently support VoIP and,with little integration, with a wider area voice network, such ascellular networks. The integration of such networks and technologiesprovides for service mobility in which a user can access substantiallythe same set of services regardless of geographical locations or methodof communication.

SUMMARY

The invention relates generally systems and methods that provide forvoicemail service mobility, such as for use with fixed-mobileconvergence devices.

One embodiment relates to a method for utilizing a common voicemail boxfor a fixed-mobile convergence device. The method includes automaticallyproviding a confirmation message from a mobile client to an enterprisesystem in response to an enterprise call from the enterprise systembeing answered by a user at the mobile client. An incoming call from acalling party is connected with the mobile client in response to theconfirmation message being received by the enterprise system to indicatethat the enterprise call has been answered by the user at the mobileclient. The incoming call is connected to a voicemail box associatedwith the mobile client (e.g., enterprise voicemail) in response todetermining that the user did not answer the incoming call at the mobileclient.

Another embodiment of the invention relates to a mobile client. Themobile client includes a processor configured to execute instructionsstored in memory for controlling operation of the mobile client. Thememory includes instructions programmed to perform a call control methodthat comprises automatically providing a confirmation message to anenterprise system in response to detecting that an incoming wirelessvoice call from the enterprise system has been answered at the mobileclient.

Yet another aspect of the invention relates to an enterprise system thatincludes a voicemail system configured to provide a voicemail box for aplurality of enterprise telephone numbers associated with the enterprisesystem. The enterprise system also is programmed to perform a callcontrol method. The call control method includes placing an enterprisecall to a mobile client in response to receiving a third party call froma calling party to an enterprise telephone number that is associatedwith the mobile client. The third party call defines a first call legand the enterprise call defines a second call leg. The first call leg isconnected with the second call leg to provide a media connection betweenthe calling party and the mobile client in response to receiving apredefined confirmation message from the mobile client to indicate thatan end user has answered the enterprise call at the mobile client. Thefirst call leg is connected to a designated voicemail box of thevoicemail system in response to determining that the end user has notanswered the enterprise call at the mobile client.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 depicts a block diagram of an example of a communication systemthat can provide voicemail mobility according to an aspect of theinvention.

FIG. 2 depicts a block diagram of portions of a mobile client that canbe implemented according to an aspect of the invention.

FIG. 3 depicts a block diagram of portions of an enterprise system thatcan be implemented according to an aspect of the invention

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present invention relates to a system and method for providing acommon voicemail box for a fixed-mobile convergence device. The approachdescribed herein helps to achieve fixed-mobile convergence bycooperation between one or more mobile client and applications runningin an enterprise system having access to a voicemail system. Forinstance, the mobile client is programmed to provide a confirmationmessage to the enterprise system if an end user answers an incoming callthat has been anchored in the enterprise. The “end user” in this contextrefers to an actual person that answer's the call, regardless of themanner in which such end user answers the call. This is to be contrastedwith cellular voicemail or other means that may also answer the call.Call control at the enterprise network is programmed to use theconfirmation message to control whether to connect the call with anenterprise voicemail system or to connect the call with a calling partythat placed a call to an enterprise number that is associated with themobile client. For instance, the enterprise call control can connect theincoming call from the calling party with the mobile client if theconfirmation message is received to indicate that an end user hasanswered the enterprise call at the mobile client. Alternatively, theenterprise call control can connect the incoming call to a designatedvoicemail box for the mobile client (e.g., an enterprise voicemail box)if it is determined that the call has not been answered by a user at themobile client (e.g., the call is ignored or sent to cellular voicemail).The associated enterprise call control also disconnects the outgoingcall to the mobile client in response to determining that the end userhas not answered the call so that such enterprise call does not end upin cellular voicemail.

As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, portions of theinvention, including portions implemented in the mobile client or in theenterprise, may be embodied as a method, data processing system, orcomputer program product. Accordingly, these portions of the inventionmay take the form of an entirely hardware embodiment, an entirelysoftware embodiment, or an embodiment combining software and hardware.Furthermore, portions of the invention may be embodied as a computerprogram product on one or more computer-usable storage medium havingcomputer readable program code on the medium (or media). Any suitablecomputer-readable medium may be utilized including, but not limited to,static and dynamic storage devices, hard disks, optical storage devices,and magnetic storage devices, which may reside at one location or bedistributed among storage devices.

Certain embodiments of the invention are described herein with referenceto signaling diagrams and functional block diagrams of methods, systems,and computer program products. It will be understood that blocks of theillustrations, and combinations of blocks in the illustrations, can beimplemented by computer-executable instructions. Thesecomputer-executable instructions may be provided to one or moreprocessor of a special purpose computer, or other programmable dataprocessing apparatus (or a combination of devices and circuits, such asin the form of a mobile client) to produce a machine, such that theinstructions, which execute via the processor, implement the functionsdescribed with respect to the block or blocks.

These computer-executable instructions may also be stored incomputer-readable memory that can direct a computer (or computers) orother programmable data processing apparatus (e.g., a mobile client) tofunction in a particular manner, such that the instructions stored inthe computer-readable memory result in an article of manufactureincluding instructions which implement the function specified in theblock or blocks. The computer program instructions may also be loadedonto one or more computer or other programmable data processingapparatus or appliance to cause a series of operational steps to beperformed on the computer or other programmable apparatus or applianceto produce a computer implemented process such that the instructionswhich execute on the computer or other programmable apparatus providesteps for implementing the functions specified in the blocks depicted inthe appended drawings.

In certain embodiments, the mobile client can be configured to operatein any number of one or more different radio technologies, any of whichmay be utilized to send or receive a voice call as well as communicatedata. As used herein, the term “radio technology” and variations of thisterm are intended to encompass any form of wireless communication thatmay be utilized to send, to receive or to send and receive audio signals(including voice signals), data signals or a combination of voice anddata signals without requiring a hard-wired or other physicalconnection. Examples of different radio technologies include cellulartelephones (e.g., 2G, 3G or 4G Global System for Mobile (GSM)technologies), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS)technologies, or personal communication system (PCS) communicationtechnologies; wireless networks (e.g., wireless local area networks(WLAN), such as WiFi; wireless metropolitan area networks (WirelessMAN),such as WiMAX; and any variation and improvements thereof), satellites,Bluetooth, two-way (or half-duplex) radio, and any combinations thereof.Those skilled in the art will understand and appreciate that variousstandards and protocols exist and have yet to be developed to enablecommunication of data and voice via these and other radio technologies.For example, the mobile client can be embodied in any form of device,such as including a cellular telephone, personal digital assistant(PDA), a portable computer (e.g., a laptop computer, or tablet computer)and the like.

Turning to the figures, FIG. 1 depicts an example of a communicationsystem 10 that can implement various aspects of the invention. Thesystem includes a mobile client 12 and an enterprise system 14. Theenterprise system 14 can communicate with the mobile client 12 via onemore public network 16. Those skilled in the art will understand thatthe particular types of protocols utilized for communication between themobile client and the system 14 may vary depending on the type andconfiguration of the mobile client and the wireless network (ornetworks) through which the mobile client can communicate.

The mobile client 12 can be implemented as a single or multimode devicethat includes a corresponding number of one or more wireless interfaces.The mobile client 12 is configured to communicate data and voice usingone or more of the wireless interfaces. Each wireless interface employsa corresponding communication protocol for communication of voice, dataand or voice and data via an associated radio technology. For example,the mobile client 12 can include a data interface and a voice interfacethat can be employed to send and receive data and voice, respectively,relative to the mobile client using a corresponding radio technology(e.g., a cellular radio technology, such as GSM or PCS). The particularmanner in which an incoming voice call is connected to the mobile clientfrom an associated base station will vary depending on the protocolestablished for network to which the mobile client is connected. It willbe appreciated the protocol can permit concurrent communication of voiceand data via corresponding wireless interface of the mobile client. Ifthe mobile client 12 is a multi-mode device, the mobile client caninclude one or more additional wireless interface that is can beconfigured to provide for communication of voice, data or a combinationof voice and data via a radio technology that is different from thefirst wireless interface.

The mobile client 12 can include an associated public (or enterprise)telephone number. For instance, calls placed by a calling party 22 tothe enterprise telephone number for the mobile client 12 can be routedby the public network 16 to the enterprise system 14 for selectiverouting to the mobile client, such as through a local wireless basestation 18. Alternatively, the enterprise system 14 may send theincoming call placed to the enterprise telephone number to anothercommunication device that is associated with the enterprise number. Suchother communication device can include an analog telephone, a digitaltelephone, a laptop computer, a PC or other communications enableddevice that is associated with the enterprise telephone number. Thoseskilled in the art will understand and appreciate that the enterprisenumber can be considered a “one” number that may be shared by or becommon to a plurality of fixed and mobile devices, including the mobileclient 12 and one or more other telecommunication devices such as analogor digital telephones connected within the enterprise system 14. It willbe further understood and appreciated various types of criteria andalgorithms that can be implemented by the enterprise network todetermine where the call to the enterprise number should be routed. Theapproach described in the examples herein relates to situations when thecall is routed to the mobile client such as by placing another call tothe mobile client.

One or more private (e.g., cellular) telephone number is also associatedwith the mobile client 12. In contrast to calls placed to the enterprisenumber, a call that is placed to the private telephone number associatedwith the mobile client 12 is routed directly (e.g., corresponding to adirect call) to the mobile client through the base station 18. Thus, theenterprise system 14 can make a call to the private telephone numberassociated with the mobile client 12 as part of the process fortransferring an incoming call to the enterprise number for the mobileclient.

The enterprise system 14 can include a public network gateway 24 thatprovides an interface connection to public network 16. The interfaceconnection can include, for example, as a primary rate interface (PRI))or basic rate interface (BRI), which can vary depending on the level ofservice associated with the enterprise system 100. Other types ofconnections can also be utilized to interconnect the gateway 24 with thepublic network 16.

At the enterprise, the public network gateway 24 can be coupled to a PBX(Private Branch Exchange) 26 that includes hardware and software that isprogrammed and configured to route calls within the enterprise system14. The PBX can implement any combination of private or hosted switchingas well as any circuit switched or packet switched. The PBX 26 can alsobe implemented as an internet protocol (IP) PBX, such as to be capableof carrying voice over IP (VoIP). The PBX 26 can provide a variety ofPBX functionality

The PBX 26 can be connected to (or include) call control processing 28to control routing and manage calls placed to telephone numbersassociated with the enterprise system 14. For instance, the call control28 is programmed to route the incoming call placed to the enterprisenumber to the mobile client 12, such as through the public networkgateway 24, the public network 16, the local base station 18 andultimately at the mobile client. In other situations and circumstances,the call control 28 is programmed to forward the incoming call to avoicemail system 30.

The voicemail system 30 can be implemented in a variety of differentways as is known in the art such as including a designated voicemail boxprogrammed for use in storing voicemail messages and greetings for agiven end user. There can be any number of one or more such voicemailboxes programmed in the voicemail system 30. In one embodiment, thevoicemail system 30 includes a common voicemail box for the enterprisetelephone number associated with the mobile client 12. Such commonmailbox can be utilized to provide an appropriate greeting and storemessages for calls placed to the enterprise number. The voicemail boxcan be accessible via the mobile client 12 as well as being accessiblevia one or more other devices or stations 32 which may operate within orexternal to the enterprise system 14. It is to be understood that suchstations 32 can be hardwired in a network infrastructure to which thevoicemail system 30 is coupled, or alternatively, one or more of suchdevices can be wirelessly in communication with the network or thevoicemail system 30 or otherwise be capable of communicating with theenterprise system 14. It further thus should be understood andappreciated that the systems and methods described herein can beutilized effectively, without distinction, as to the type andconfiguration of the enterprise system 14 and PBX 26.

By way of further example, in the system 10, the calling party 22 canplace a call to the enterprise number that is associated with the mobileclient 12 via the public network 16. This call is indicated at dottedline 34 interconnecting the calling party 22 and the public network 16.It is to be understood that the calling party 22 can utilize any type ofcommunication equipment capable of placing a telephone call irrespectiveof the location of the calling party relative to the mobile client 12 orto the enterprise system 14. The public network 16 in turn routes thecall to the enterprise system 14 via the public network gateway 24. Itwill further be understood that, in certain embodiments, the incomingcall can originate from one of the other stations 32 within theenterprise system 14 or another mobile client, such as by short digitdialing or extension dialing.

The public network gateway 24 signals the appropriate hardware and/orsoftware associated with the PBX 26 to identify the incoming call. Thecall control 28, in response to recognizing that the incoming call needsto be forwarded to the mobile client 12, anchors the call in theenterprise network and places an outgoing call to a predeterminedprivate (e.g., cellular) telephone number associated with the mobileclient 12. As used herein, the term “anchor” and its phonetic variantsrefers to a point or to an operation within the enterprise system 14operation where one or more call legs (e.g., an incoming call leg from athird party and the enterprise call leg) are connected in the enterprisesystem 14, such as connected to a port address in the gateway 24 or PBX26. Additionally, in reference to the incoming call from the callingparty 22 and the enterprise call that is placed to the mobile client 12in response to the incoming call, each of the enterprise call leg andthe incoming call leg would be considered anchored in the enterprisesystem 14.

As a further example, the call control 28 can include the database orregistry of telephone numbers identifying the private cellular numberassociated with the mobile client 12 to which the outgoing call is to beplaced. For instance, a corresponding enterprise telephone numberassociated with the mobile client can be used as an index for locatingthe private cellular number. The outgoing enterprise call to the mobileclient can be sent to the public network gateway 24 and to the publicnetwork 16 to the appropriate base station 18 to which the mobile clientis currently registered. At this stage there are two call legs at theenterprise system 14: an incoming call leg corresponding to the callfrom the calling party 22 and an outgoing enterprise call leg from theenterprise network to the mobile client.

The outgoing enterprise call can be routed through the public network 16to the local base station 18, which provides coverage for the mobileclient 12. It will be appreciated that the outgoing enterprise call legis not required to go through the public network gateway 24, however.The enterprise call can be placed from the enterprise to the mobileclient's private number using any type of wired or wireless technology(e.g., VoIP call, a cellular call or the like). In response to receivingthe call placed by the enterprise system 14, the base station 18 cansignal the mobile client 12 of an incoming call, which at this stagecorresponds to the enterprise call leg placed from the enterprise system14. The particular signaling method may vary depending on the protocolutilized by the base station 18. Thus at this stage the incoming callplaced from the calling party 22 can be anchored in the enterprisenetwork and/or the incoming call can simply ring at the enterprisenetwork while the outgoing enterprise call is placed to the mobileclient.

The mobile client 12 includes call control software 36 that isprogrammed to control processing of incoming calls received at themobile client 12. Part of the call control method can include monitoringincoming call connection status to determine whether an end user of themobile client has answered the incoming call. For example, the callplaced from the enterprise system 14 to the mobile client 12 can ring atthe mobile client in response to the signaling provided via the basestation 18. A user thus has an option of ignoring the incoming call,answering the incoming call (e.g., by pressing the talk button), orotherwise answering the call or indicating the call is to be ignored bypressing a button or man machine interface. Alternatively, in certainsituations, the mobile client may be powered down, such that theincoming call is not detected by the call control software 36. Sinceseveral options exist at the mobile client 12, the call control 36 isprogrammed to determine whether the action or inaction at the mobileclient corresponds to the end user answering the call. In response todetecting that the end user has answered the call (e.g., by pressing thetalk button or otherwise answering the call), the mobile client callcontrol 36 automatically provides one or more confirmation message backto the enterprise system 14 or, in particular, to the enterprise callcontrol 28 that is processing the incoming call leg from the callingparty 22. It is to be understood that the call control method 36 at themobile client 10 typically will only operate if the mobile client isturned on. Even when the client 12 is turned off, the enterprise system14 is programmed to control routing the incoming call to the voicemailbox in the absence of receiving the confirmation message from the mobileclient.

As used in the context of providing the confirmation message, the term“automatically” means that the mobile client 12 is programmed to sendthe confirmation message in an automatic manner, programmaticallywithout requiring any user intervention. The confirmation messagegenerally will be sent without any knowledge of the user (unless theuser is aware of such background functionality). The confirmationmessage provided by the mobile client is separate from any signalingbetween the base station 18 and the mobile client that is used to set upand connect the enterprise call there between. That is, the useranswering the call operates as a trigger or stimulus that causes themobile client to send the confirmation message, but the confirmationmessage is sent automatically regardless of how the user answers thecall (e.g., be it answered by pressing a button, opening a phone,unlocking a key pad interface, being automatically answered after apredetermined number of rings or the like). Stated differently, theconfirmation message is not sent manually by the user of the mobileclient, but instead it is sent programmatically by the mobile clientcall control 36.

The information contained in the confirmation message and the manner inwhich the confirmation message is sent can vary according to the methodin which the mobile client 12 provides the confirmation message. In oneembodiment, the call control 36 at the mobile client 12 can provide theconfirmation message as data provided to the enterprise system 14 via adata channel. For instance, the call control 36 can cause predefinedconfirmation data to be sent through a data interface of the mobileclient 12 using a corresponding radio technology, which may be the sameor different from the radio technology being used for the incoming callvia the wireless communication link 20. That is, the confirmationmessage can be provided via a data channel using a first radiotechnology (e.g., cellular) via an out-of-band data channel of thecommunication link 20, which is sent through the base station 18 andpublic network 16. Alternatively, the confirmation message can beprovided as data using a second radio technology that is different fromcellular via a separate wireless communication link, indicatedschematically at 38

In another embodiment, the call control 36 can cause the mobile client12 to provide the confirmation message to the enterprise system 14 via avoice channel that is connected through the base station 18 and publicnetwork 16 back to the enterprise system 14. For example, theconfirmation message can be provided as a sequence of one or more DTMFtones.

In view of the foregoing, those skilled in the art will appreciate thatthe confirmation message can correspond to any of a variety of types ofpredetermined information provided through one or more differentcommunication channels to indicate that the incoming call has beenanswered by the end user of the mobile client 12.

Additionally, since the mobile client 12 may receive calls from theenterprise system 14 that have been placed to the enterprise numberassociated with the mobile client and the mobile client can receivecalls placed directly to the private cellular number associated with themobile client, the call control 36 can also be programmed to distinguishbetween these two different types of calls. That is, the mobile clientcan include means to enable the call control 36 to determine if theincoming call to the mobile client is coming through the enterprisenetwork (or anchored). The call control 36 can be programmed to make adetermination if a call to the mobile client has been placed from theenterprise system 14 in response to a third party call to the enterprisenumber for the mobile client.

For example, the enterprise call control 28 can insert anchor metadata(e.g., a predefined prefix appended to a calling party identifier suchas Caller ID) before placing the call to indicate that the callcorresponds to a call placed by the enterprise system 14 to the mobileclient's enterprise telephone number. The mobile call control 36 canemploy the anchor metadata to determine that incoming call from theenterprise has been anchored in the enterprise. Alternatively, a DialedNumber Identification Service (DNIS) or Automatic Number Identification(ANI) algorithm can be utilized by the mobile client 12 to determine atelephone number for the calling party, which can further determinewhether the call has been placed from the enterprise network. The callcontrol 36 thus can be programmed to send confirmation messages inresponse to determining that the incoming call received at the mobileclient 12 corresponds to a call coming through the enterprise network.

In situations when an out-of-band data network is available, informationsent over the data network can be used by the mobile client 12 todetermine if an incoming call is anchored in the enterprise network. Forexample, the enterprise system 14 can send a data message (e.g., withanchor data) over a data channel to inform the mobile client 12 that thecall is coming through the enterprise system 14, which can be providedconcurrently with placing the call. As yet another alternative, inresponse to an incoming call ringing at the mobile client 12, the mobilecall control 36 can send a request to an application in enterprisenetwork 14 via a data channel to query if the incoming call is ananchored call coming through the enterprise system. The enterprise callcontrol 28 (or other method running in the enterprise system) canrespond via the data channel (e.g., with anchor data) to enable themobile client to take appropriate action.

When the mobile call control 36 determines that the incoming call fromthe base station 18 is a direct call to the private cellular number forthe mobile client 12 or determines otherwise the call is not anchored inthe enterprise system 14, the call control 36 can withhold and not sendthe confirmation message regardless of whether the end user has answeredthe call. This determination thus prevents potential confirmation frombeing automatically provided over the voice channel for direct callsthat are not being processed or bridged through the enterprise system14. It can also be used to control if a confirmation message is sentover data channel, such as to conserve bandwidth usage. The mobile callcontrol 36 can also be programmed to control the timing and duration ofthe confirmation message that is provided from the mobile client 12 suchas if the confirmation message is provided via a voice channel from themobile client.

The enterprise call control 28 can control routing and connecting of theincoming call from the calling party 22 based on whether it isdetermined that an end user has answered the corresponding enterprisecall to the mobile client. For example, the enterprise call control 28can be programmed to connect the incoming call leg from the callingparty 22 to the outgoing call leg placed to the mobile client 12 if theconfirmation message indicates that the incoming call has been answeredby an end user at the mobile client 12. Alternatively, the call control28 can be programmed to route the incoming call from the calling partyto a designated voicemail box for the voicemail box system 30 that isassociated with the mobile client in response to determining that theend user has not answered the call at the mobile client. Thisdetermination can be made in the absence of receiving the expectedconfirmation message or if a message is received that indicates someevent has occurred that is other than the end user answering the call.For example, the absence of the confirmation message or another type ofmessage can inform the enterprise call control 28 that the call had beenignored, not answered, or had been answered by a voicemail service forthe mobile client 12 (e.g., cellular voicemail) that is different fromthe enterprise voicemail system 30. That is, information received by theenterprise call control 28 can confirm that the call had been answeredby the user of the mobile client 12 or the information can confirm thatit has not been answered by the end user. In response to making thisdetermination, the enterprise call control 28 can disconnect theoutgoing call leg to ensure that such call does not end up, for example,in the cellular voicemail of the mobile client 12.

In the embodiment where the mobile client 12 provides the confirmationmessage to the enterprise system 14 through an active voice channel(e.g., a cellular voice channel), the enterprise call control 28 can beprogrammed to mitigate noise or disruption on the incoming call legbetween the enterprise system 14 and the calling party 22. For example,the enterprise call control 28 can include a filter (e.g., a filteringprocess) that is programmed to extract the confirmation message or otherinformation that may be provided as audible information on the voicechannel to confirm that the end user has answered the call at the mobileclient 12. For instance, the filtering can be programmed to extract DTMFtones during a time period when it is known that the confirmation mightbe provided.

Additional prearranged cooperation can exist between the mobile clientcall control 36 and the enterprise call control to facilitate filteringof the confirmation message from a voice channel at the enterprise callcontrol 28. For example, the mobile client call control 36 can controltiming when the confirmation message is provided. In one embodiment, themobile client call control 36 can provide a first confirmation messagevia the voice channel and subsequently provide a second confirmationmessage a predetermined time period after the first confirmationmessage. The enterprise call control 28 can apply the known timing ofthe confirmation messages to identify and filter out the second and anysubsequent confirmation messages if the first confirmation message isreceived.

Additionally, after the enterprise call control 28 determines that theconfirmation message has been received, it can bridge the traffic to thecalling party 22 for a predetermined period of time. During suchbridging the enterprise call control 28 can continue to monitor themedia from the mobile client 12 and filter out any reoccurrence of theconfirmation message from the mobile client. The enterprise call control28 can insert silence, or alternatively, it can provide white noise orany other predetermined sound to the calling party 22 in place of theconfirmation messages that are filtered. After the expiration of thispredetermined time period for confirmation message processing, theenterprise call control 28 can connect the call leg from the callingparty 22 with the call leg between the enterprise network and the mobileclient 12 directly, hence no filtering of any in-band DTMF digits.

In view of the foregoing, it will be appreciated that the system 10programmed and configured as described herein facilitates the use of asingle voicemail box for an end user of a mobile client for calls placedto the user's corresponding enterprise telephone number. Even thoughvarious types of signaling and protocols and different networkinfrastructures may reside within the public network 16 between themobile client and the enterprise network, a protocol and networkagnostic approach is provided that can effectively determine whether anend user has actually answered the call at the mobile client 12.

FIG. 2 depicts an example of a mobile client 50 that can be implementedaccording to an aspect of the invention. The mobile client 50 canprovide for the transmission and receipt of voice, data, video and otherinformation through bidirectional communication with one or morenetworks, schematically indicated at 52. It is to be understood that themobile client 50 can communicate using any one or more of a plurality ofradio technologies depending upon the requirements and capabilities ofthe mobile client 50. An enterprise system 54 is also connected to thenetwork 52 via an appropriate (wired and/or wireless) connection. Forinstance, the network 52 can represent any combination of physical andwireless types of communication media, such as including cellularcommunications, public switch telephone network (PSTN), WiFi, WiMax orany one or more other combinations of wireless or wired communicationtechnologies.

Generally, the mobile client 50 includes one or more processors 56 thatare coupled to an internal bus 58 to provide for communication betweenthe processor and other components operating within the mobile client.For instance, the mobile client 50 can include memory programmed withinstructions executable by the processor 56 for controlling operation ofthe mobile client. In the example of FIG. 2, the blocks depicted in thememory 60 include instructions that are readable and/or executable bythe processor 56 for performing methods or processes for controllingoperation of the mobile client 50.

By way of example, the memory 60 includes a call control method 62programmed for controlling calling functions associated with the mobileclient, including functionality relating to processing of an incomingcall. Such calling functions can include detecting an incoming call andproviding a corresponding confirmation message in response to making adetermination that the incoming call has been answered by an end user ofthe mobile client 50. For example, the mobile client 50 includes a userinterface, which can be responsive to user interaction with one or morebuttons, a touch screen, one or more switches or the like that can beutilized to answer an incoming call received at the mobile client. Asone example, in response to ringing the phone to indicate an incomingcall, the end user can press a “talk” or other button to answer theincoming call. The call control method 62 can include a call answerdetection method 66 that is programmed to detect if the end user hasanswered the incoming call. As another example, a user input foranswering an incoming call can be provided from a Bluetooth or otherremote device in communication with the mobile client. The answerdetection method 66 thus can determine that incoming call has beenanswered in response to the user interface 64 receiving a user inputcorresponding to the call being answered by an end user. The act ofanswering may occur locally or remotely relative to the mobile client 50to provide for voice communication between the end user and enterprisesystem.

The call control 62 can also process information (e.g., anchor data)that is provided with the incoming call to determine if the incomingcall has been sent through the enterprise system 54 (e.g., correspondingto an anchored call). The call control 62 thus can extract data from theincoming call or otherwise examine the origin of the call. The processof identifying that an incoming call has been anchored (e.g., extractionof metadata or other mechanism) can be transparent to the end user atthe mobile client 50. For example, the client call control 62 canperform pre-processing and remove the anchor data from the incoming calldata so that remaining processing of the incoming call can proceed in anormal manner (e.g., the caller ID is correct). The incoming callprocessing can vary according to the signaling provided from thecellular local base station in the network 52 with which the mobileclient is connected for cellular service. Additionally, oralternatively, the call control 62 can receive anchor data from thenetwork via an out-of-band data channel.

The call control 62 also can include confirmation message control 68that is programmed to control transmission of the confirmation messagefrom the mobile client to the enterprise system 54 in response todetecting that the incoming call has been answered by the end user(based on status or other information from the call answer detectionmethod 66). Transmission of the confirmation message can further becontrolled in response to confirming that the incoming call correspondsto a call sent through the enterprise system (e.g., a call to theenterprise number associated with the mobile client 50). It is to beunderstood that the confirmation that the call has been placed from theenterprise system 52 may not be present in a more simplified version ofthe mobile client 50 that is implemented according to an aspect of theinvention.

In response to determining that the end user has answered the enterprisecall, the confirmation message control 68 causes the mobile client tosend the confirmation message to the enterprise system 54 via anappropriate interface, such as via a voice interface 70, a datainterface 72 or as a combination of the voice and data interfaces of themobile client 50. It is to be understood and appreciated that there canbe any number of one or more voice interfaces 70 as well as any numberof one or more data interfaces 72 operating within the mobile client 50,which may depend on the number of modes and radio technologies for whichthe mobile client has been designed and configured to operate. Thememory 60 can also include an interface control system 74 that isutilized to control an appropriate interface for transmitting theconfirmation message back to the enterprise system 54.

As one example, the confirmation message control 68 can be configuredand programmed to provide the confirmation message to the enterprisesystem 54 via the data interface 72. The confirmation message control 68can be programmed to send a first type of confirmation message (e.g., apositive confirmation) if the call answered detection method 66determines that the call has been answered by the end user. Similarly,if the call is ignored, not received, or otherwise not answered by theend user, the confirmation message control 68 can provide a second typeof confirmation message (e.g., a negative confirmation message) via thedata interface 72 to inform the enterprise network 54 accordingly. Useof the data interface 72 at the mobile client 50 generally depends onwhether an out-of-band data channel is available for communicationbetween the mobile client to the enterprise system 54, such as throughthe network 52. Thus, coverage can vary whether this capability will befunctional for the mobile client 50. There also exists a potentialcomplexity of synchronizing and timing of the call answer confirmationvia the data interface 72 depending, for example, upon the availablebandwidth and the ability of the data channel to operate concurrentlywith the voice channel from the mobile client.

In another embodiment, the mobile client 50 can be programmed to sendthe confirmation message to the enterprise system 54 via the voiceinterface 70. For example, the confirmation message control 68 caninvoke the interface control system 74 to provide a predetermined dualtone multiple frequency (DTMF) sequence of one or more tone (e.g., a “#”tone or other tone or combination of plural tones) as the confirmationmessage. Those skilled in the art will understand and appreciate thatany type of DTMF or other audio frequency message that is transmittablevia the voice interface 70 and can be utilized as the confirmationmessage. The voice interface 70 can provide the confirmation message tothe enterprise system 54 via the network 52 in response to the end useranswering the incoming call.

Moreover, the mobile client 50 can select which type of interface 70 or72 to utilize for providing the confirmation message in conjunction withreceiving the incoming call or the interface for providing theconfirmation message can be set in advance. For example, the interfacecan be selected based on the relative availability or quality of servicefor the voice interface 70 or the data interface 72. Still in otherembodiments, a given one of the interfaces can be utilized for allconfirmation messages. As described herein, the mobile client 50 may bea single or multimode device capable of communicating with theenterprise system 54 using one or more types of radio technology, any ofwhich can be used for providing the confirmation message.

It will be appreciated that additional functionality can be implementedby the confirmation message control 68, such as for embodiments thatutilize the voice interface 70 for transmitting the confirmation messageto the enterprise 54. For instance, it will be appreciated that variousdifferent types of networks and communication protocols exist thatultimately determine temporal availability of an active voice channelfrom the mobile client 50 to the network 52 for sending a confirmationmessage. As one example, one type of network configuration provides afully established end-to-end call connection when the mobile client 50receives a connected call event, such that the mobile client cantransmit the confirmation message as soon as it accepts the call. Inother network configurations, the call may not be establishedsufficiently initially in response the end user answering the call, suchthat an initial confirmation message transmitted through the voiceinterface 70 might be lost or otherwise not sent through the network 52.Accordingly, the confirmation message control 68 may be programmed totransmit the confirmation message any number of one or more times toprovide an implementation that is effective for the various differenttypes of network configurations. The number of transmissions can varydynamically depending on the type of wireless protocol being implementedor it can be a fixed number of transmissions for all type of protocols.

As a further example, the confirmation message control 68 can cause themobile client to transmit a first confirmation message a predeterminedtime after the call has been answered and a call connected event hasbeen received from the network 52. The confirmation message control 68further can transmit one or more subsequent confirmation messages at apredetermined time period thereafter. For example, the firstconfirmation message can be sent 500 milliseconds after the mobileclient 50 receives the call connected event from the network 52, andapproximately two seconds after transmitting the first confirmationmessage the mobile client 50 can transmit a second confirmation message.

The enterprise system 54 is programmed to connect the incoming call legto an appropriate destination (e.g., to the mobile client call leg or toa voicemail box in a voicemail system 78) responsive to receiving (or tonot receiving) the confirmation message. In the example of FIG. 2, theenterprise system 54 includes a gateway 76 for interconnecting theenterprise system 54 with the arrangement of one or more public and/orprivate networks, which can correspond to at least a portion of thenetwork 52. The enterprise system 54 can also include a PBX (e.g., anIP-PBX) that is programmed and configured for routing calls receivedfrom the network via the gateway 76 to one or more stations (not shown),which may reside physically in the enterprise system 54 or resideexternal to the enterprise, such as described herein. The enterprisesystem 54 also includes call control processing 82 that is programmed toconnect the incoming call leg from a calling party with the enterprisecall leg to the mobile client 50 in response to the confirmation messageindicating that the mobile client's end user has answered the call atthe mobile client 50. Alternatively, if the call control/processingmethod determines that the end user at the mobile client 50 has notanswered the call, the call control/processing block 82 can forward theincoming call leg the enterprise voicemail system 78.

FIG. 3 depicts an example of an enterprise system 100 that can beutilized to enable use of a single voicemail box for multiple devicesaccording to an aspect of the invention. The enterprise system 100 canbe coupled to one or more public networks 102 via a corresponding publicgateway 104. The public gateway 104 can reside wholly or partiallywithin the enterprise system 100, as depicted in FIG. 3, or it can beexternal to the enterprise system. The enterprise system 100 includes aPBX 106 that is coupled to the gateway 104 for routing incoming andoutgoing calls relative to the enterprise system. Those skilled in theart will understand various types of PBXs that can be utilized inenterprise including private or hosted systems, which can employ packetand/or circuit switching for routing of incoming and outgoing calls viathe gateway 104. One or more other devices 108 can be coupled to the PBX106, such as including any number of analog or digital telephones, faxmachines, or any other communication enabled device. The capabilitiesand type of PBX 106 and the types of devices 108 in communication withthe PBX can vary, for example, according to the application requirementsand cost constraints of the enterprise and the number of potentialusers. The PBX 106 can be connected to a network 110 in the enterprisesystem 100 which can be a local network, a wide area network (e.g.,including the internet) or any combination thereof.

A call control method 114 is programmed to control processing ofincoming calls, which are placed to an enterprise telephone number. Theincoming call can be received at the enterprise system 100 via thegateway 104 and provided to the PBX 106. For instance, an incoming callcan be placed to a user's enterprise telephone number that is associatedwith any of the other devices 108 or associated with a mobile client 116to which the enterprise number has been associated. It is to beunderstood that the enterprise number can be the “one number” that isassociated with multiple devices, including one or more of the otherdevices 108 and the mobile client 116. The call control method 114 incooperation with the PBX 106 determines to which device the incomingcall should be routed. For instance, the PBX 106 operates to route theincoming call designating the enterprise number to the mobile client 116or to a corresponding one of the other devices 108. According to anaspect of the invention, the call control 114 further can detect whethera call sent to the mobile client 116 has been answered by an end user ofthe mobile client in response to a confirmation message received fromthe mobile client 116. As described herein, the confirmation can be sentfrom the mobile client 116 to the call control 114 via a voice channelor a data channel.

In a network implementation, as shown in FIG. 3, the enterprise system100 can include one or more server 112 that can include applicationsassociated with controlling operation of various telecommunicationsequipment at the enterprise system 100, including the call controlmethod 114. The server 112 can be connected with the PBX 106 directly(represented as dotted line connected there between), or the server canbe connected to the PBX through the network 110, with each of the server112 and PBX 106 operating as nodes in the network. As anotheralternative, the call control 114 can correspond to methods executedinternally within the PBX 106. In any implementation, the call control114 is programmed to control processing and routing of incoming callsaccording to an aspect of the invention.

By way of example, the call control 114 anchors the incoming call legfrom a third party (not shown) within the enterprise system 100. Forcalls placed to the enterprise number associated with the mobile client116, the call control 114 makes a corresponding outgoing call to themobile client 116, which call can be placed through the gateway 104.This outgoing call will be referred to as the enterprise call leg. Ifthe call control 114 determines that the end user at the mobile client116 has answered the call in response to receiving a confirmationmessage sent from the mobile client, the call control can connect theincoming call leg with enterprise call leg placed from the enterprisesystem 100 to the mobile client 116. In situations when the call control114 determines that the call has not been answered by the end user atthe mobile client 116 (or if the call control 114 cannot confirm thatthe call has been answered), the call control 114 can transfer andconnect the incoming call leg to an appropriate voicemail box in avoicemail system 118. The call control 114 can also cancel or otherwisecause the enterprise call to the mobile client to be disconnectedconcurrently with forwarding the incoming call leg to the voicemailsystem.

The voicemail system 118 can be connected to the server 112 via theenterprise network 110, as depicted in FIG. 3. Alternatively, thevoicemail system 118 can be implemented within the PBX 106. While in theexample of FIG. 3, the server and call control 114 and voicemail system118 are illustrated as being connected to the PBX 106 via network 110 itis to be understood and appreciated that the PBX 106, voicemail system118 and server or any combination of such components can be implementedand integrated together, such as within the PBX or in some otherarrangement of dedicated telecommunications equipment.

As a further example, the call control 114 can include a call anchoringcontrol 120 that is programmed to detect that an incoming a call isintended for an enterprise number associated with the mobile client 116.The control 120 can anchor the call leg from the calling party at thePBX 106, gateway 114 or elsewhere within the enterprise system 100 andinitiate an outgoing enterprise call to a private (e.g., cellular)telephone number associated with the mobile client 116. The call canarrive at the mobile client 116 and be processed such as describedherein. For example, when an end user at the mobile client 116 answersthe incoming call from the enterprise (e.g., the enterprise call leg),the mobile client can be programmed to automatically provide aconfirmation message back to the call control 114 at the enterprisesystem 100 to indicate that the call has been answered by the end user.As described herein, the confirmation message can be provided from themobile client 116 via a voice channel or data channel or as acombination of voice and data.

Additionally, the call/anchoring control 120 can also include an insertfunction 130 that is programmed to insert predetermined anchor data inone or more fields of the enterprise call that is being placed to themobile client 116. The anchor data can be considered metadata since itcorresponds to data that describes a characteristic of the calling datafor the enterprise call that is placed to the mobile client; namely, theanchor data indicates that the enterprise call is anchored in theenterprise system 100. As one example, the insert function 130 caninsert anchor data, such as a predetermined prefix or postfix, into thecalling number field (e.g., part of the caller ID) of the call that isbeing placed to inform call control methods at the mobile client thatthe incoming call has been anchored within the enterprise system. Forinstance, the insert function 130 can append the calling number fieldbefore transferring the call to the public network 102 via the gateway104 the call to the mobile client's private cellular number.Alternatively, the insert function 130 can set the entire calling numberto a predefined anchor telephone number that is known to the mobileclient 116 to indicate that call is anchored in the enterprise system100.

As an alternative to utilization of the insert function 130 to modifydata in the enterprise call being placed to the mobile client 116, themobile client 116 can send an inquiry or request to the call control 114via an out-of-band data service to determine if the call has beenanchored. An appropriate data response from the call control 114 can bereturned to the mobile client 116 to confirm whether the call has beenanchored. As yet another alternative, the enterprise call control 114can provide a separate out-of-bound data message to the mobile client116 substantially concurrently with making the call to the mobile clientto inform the mobile client that the call placed by the call control 114is indeed anchored in the enterprise system 100. The mobile client 116can provide the confirmation message when the end user answers a callthat the mobile client has been determined to be anchored in theenterprise system 100.

At the enterprise system 100, the call control 114 also includes aconfirmation processor 122 that is programmed control the processassociated with receiving the confirmation message and connecting theincoming call leg from the third party with either the enterprise callleg or the voicemail system 118. The confirmation processor 122 caninclude a timer 124 that is programmed to tracking timing of one or moreevents associated with confirming whether an end user has answered theenterprise call placed to the mobile client's private telephone number.

The timer 124 can include a confirmation timer function that isactivated in response to detecting a call connected event for theenterprise call leg that had been placed to the private numberassociated with the mobile client 116. The confirmation timer functiontracks the time duration from a call connected event (e.g.,corresponding to time t=0) to a predetermined time that is utilized todetermine if the confirmation message has been received within thepredetermined confirmation time period. This confirmation time periodmay be programmable or it can be fixed.

Additionally, the timer 124 can include a connection timer function thatis utilized to determine if the outgoing call has been connected withthe mobile client 116 within another predetermined time period. Theconnection timer function is usually set for a greater time period thanthe confirmation timer function. Therefore, if the connection timerfunction of the timer 124 determines that the enterprise call placed tothe private number of the mobile client 116 is not answered within apredetermined connection time, the call control 114 can employ voicemailcontrol 126 to connect the incoming call leg with the voicemail system118. Similarly, if the confirmation message is not received within thepredetermined confirmation time from the call connecting event, theenterprise call control can employ the voicemail control 126 to connectthe incoming call with the voicemail system 118.

When the confirmation message may be provided over a voice channel(e.g., as DTMF digits), the confirmation processor 122 can also includea bridging function 128 that is programmed to bridge media between thecalling party and the mobile client 116 for an initial portion of thecall. In particular, the confirmation processor 122 can employ thebridging function 128 to interface the incoming call leg between theenterprise and the calling party and the enterprise call leg between theenterprise system 100 and the mobile client 116. Such bridging function,for example, can operate by employing a gateway port address as part ofthe media session description information provided to set up theenterprise call. Since the enterprise call will be connected at such anidentified port address in the enterprise system 100, incoming datapackets can be monitored during the bridging period. The bridgingfunction 128 can be active for a duration defined by the confirmationtimer to control bridging between the respective call legs.

As a further example, the enterprise system 100 can also include afilter function 132 that filters out confirmation messages that areprovided over the voice channel during the bridging time period. In theexample of FIG. 3, the filter function 132 can be implemented as part ofthe confirmation processor 122 running within the application server112. It will be appreciated that the filter function 128 can beimplemented as hardware, software, or as combination of hardware andsoftware that is configured to filter out the confirmation messages orother information that might be transmitted from the mobile client overa voice channel, such as during the bridging of call legs through theenterprise system 100. While depicted as being implemented within theconfirmation processor 122, the filter 132 may reside or elsewhere inthe enterprise system 100.

As a further example, DTMF can be used to provide the confirmationmessage from the mobile client 116 over a voice channel, such as byusing a real-time transport protocol (RTP) to provide a voice mediastream a specified port address in the enterprise system 100. For suchan example, the filter 132 can be programmed to parse RTP buffers in thegateway 104 for the specified port address and extract the embedded DTMFas well as other potentially distracting data. The extracted data thuscan be filtered out and dropped from the media stream between thecalling party and the enterprise. The filter function 132, for instance,can operate to perform in-band analysis and extract tones according toRFC 2833 specification, which is published by the Internet EngineeringTask Force.

By employing the filter function 132 to filter out the confirmationmessage provided via the voice channel, the confirmation message doesnot disrupt or disturb voice media that is provided to the callingparty. During this bridging time period, the bridging function 128 canalso insert white noise, a predetermined tone, silence or any other typeof audio data (e.g., voice or music) in place of the confirmationmessage that is filtered out. After the expiration of the bridgingperiod (e.g., as indicated by expiration of the confirmation timer), thecall anchoring control 120 (or another part of the call control 114) candirectly connect the incoming call leg with the enterprise call legsince there is no further need for the bridging function after theconfirmation timer has expired. Additionally, the mobile client 116 canbe programmed to not send the confirmation message in response todetermining that the incoming is not anchored in the enterprise.

What have been described above are examples and embodiments of theinvention. It is, of course, not possible to describe every conceivablecombination of components or methodologies for purposes of describingthe invention, but one of ordinary skill in the art will recognize thatmany further combinations and permutations of the present invention arepossible. Accordingly, the invention is intended to embrace all suchalterations, modifications and variations that fall within the scope ofthe appended claims. In the claims, unless otherwise indicated, thearticle “a” is to refer to “one or more than one.”

1. A method for utilizing a common voicemail box for a fixed-mobileconvergence device comprising: automatically providing a confirmationmessage from a mobile client to an enterprise system in response to anenterprise call from the enterprise system being answered by a user atthe mobile client; connecting an incoming call from a calling party withthe mobile client in response to the confirmation message being receivedby the enterprise system to indicate that the enterprise call has beenanswered by the user at the mobile client; and connecting the incomingcall to an enterprise voicemail box associated with the mobile client inresponse to determining that the user did not answer the incoming callat the mobile client.
 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:determining at the mobile client whether the enterprise call originatedfrom the enterprise system; and the confirmation message from the mobileclient being provided in response to determining that the enterprisecall originated from the enterprise system
 3. The method of claim 1,wherein the mobile client is programmed to provide the confirmationmessage as information on a data channel.
 4. The method of claim 1,wherein the confirmation message is provided from the mobile client viaa voice channel.
 5. The method of claim 4, wherein the confirmationmessage comprises a predetermined dual tone multi-frequency (DTMF)sequence of at least one tone.
 6. The method of claim 5, furthercomprising controlling a transmission time for providing theconfirmation message from the mobile client.
 7. The method of claim 6,wherein the providing of the confirmation message further comprises:providing a first DTMF sequence of at least one first tone at a firsttime after establishing a call connection for the enterprise callbetween the mobile client and the enterprise system; and providing asecond DTMF sequence of at least one second tone a second time periodafter the first time.
 8. The method of claim 7, wherein the second timeperiod is predefined, the method further comprising filtering out DTMFtones at the enterprise system, including the second DTMF sequence inresponse to detecting the first DTMF sequence.
 9. The method of claim 8,further comprising inserting one of silence or predetermined audio inplace of the filtered out DTMF tones.
 10. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising: determining, at the mobile client, whether the enterprisecall is anchored in the enterprise system in response to the incomingcall from the calling party; the mobile client providing theconfirmation message if the enterprise call is determined to be anchoredin the enterprise system, and the mobile client refraining fromproviding the confirmation message in the absence of determining thatthe enterprise call is anchored in the enterprise system.
 11. The methodof claim 10, further comprising associating metadata with the enterprisecall from the enterprise system to inform the mobile client that theenterprise call is anchored in the enterprise system.
 12. The method ofclaim 10, further comprising providing information to the mobile clientfrom the enterprise system via a data channel to inform the mobileclient that the enterprise call from the enterprise system has beenanchored in the enterprise system.
 13. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising: activating a confirmation timer at the enterprise system inresponse to a call connect message from the mobile client; anddetermining if answering party is the user based on whether theconfirmation message is received before the confirmation timer expiresat a predetermined answer time.
 14. The method of claim 13, furthercomprising: bridging the incoming call from the enterprise system to thecalling party in response to detecting the confirmation message in avoice media stream from the mobile client from activation of theconfirmation timer until the confirmation timer reaches thepredetermined answer time; and connecting the incoming call with themobile client after the confirmation timer reaches the predeterminedanswer time.
 15. The method of claim 13, further comprising:disconnecting the enterprise call from the enterprise system in responseto detecting the absence of receiving a confirmation message prior toexpiration of the confirmation timer; and forwarding the incoming callto the enterprise voicemail box associated with an enterprise telephonenumber of the user.
 16. A mobile client comprising: a processorconfigured to execute instructions stored in memory for controllingoperation of the mobile client; and the memory comprising instructionsprogrammed to perform a call control method comprising: automaticallyproviding a confirmation message to an enterprise system in response todetecting that an incoming wireless voice call from the enterprisesystem has been answered for voice communication at the mobile client.17. The mobile client of claim 16, wherein the call control methodfurther is programmed to determine if the incoming wireless voice callis anchored in the enterprise system, the processor controlling themobile client to provide the confirmation message to the enterprisesystem in response to detecting (i) that the incoming wireless voicecall from the enterprise system has been answered at the mobile client,and (ii) that the incoming wireless voice call has been anchored in theenterprise system.
 18. The mobile client of claim 16, further comprisinga voice interface, the call control method employing the voice interfaceto send the confirmation message to the enterprise system via a voicechannel.
 19. The mobile client of claim 18, wherein the call controlmethod further comprises a confirmation message control programmed tocause the mobile client to transmit a first confirmation message apredetermined time after determining that the incoming wireless voicecall has been answered, and to transmit at least one second confirmationmessage at a predetermined time period thereafter transmitting the firstconfirmation message.
 20. The mobile client of claim 16, furthercomprising a data interface, the call control method employing the datainterface to send the confirmation message to the enterprise system viaa data channel.
 21. The mobile client of claim 16 in combination withthe enterprise system to provide a communication system, thecommunication system comprising: the enterprise system being programmedto place an outgoing call to the mobile client, corresponding to theincoming wireless voice call from the enterprise system, in response tothe enterprise system receiving a third party call from a calling partyto an enterprise telephone number that is associated with the mobileclient, the third party call defining a first call leg and the outgoingcall defining a second call leg; the enterprise system connecting thefirst call leg with the second call leg to provide a media connectionbetween the calling party and the mobile client if the confirmationmessage is received by the enterprise system; and the enterprise systemconnecting the third party call to a designated voicemail box associatedwith the enterprise telephone number if the confirmation message is notreceived by the enterprise system.
 22. An enterprise system comprising:a voicemail system configured to provide a voicemail box for a pluralityof enterprise telephone numbers associated with the enterprise system; acomputer programmed to perform a call control method comprising: placingan enterprise call to a mobile client in response to receiving a thirdparty call from a calling party to an enterprise telephone number thatis associated with the mobile client, the third party call defining afirst call leg and the enterprise call defining a second call leg;connecting the first call leg with the second call leg to provide amedia connection between the calling party and the mobile client inresponse to receiving a predefined confirmation message from the mobileclient that indicates an end user has answered the enterprise call atthe mobile client; and connecting the first call leg to a designatedvoicemail box of the voicemail system in response to determining thatthe end user has not answered the enterprise call at the mobile client.23. The enterprise system of claim 22, wherein the call control methodfurther comprises: a confirmation timer that is activated in response toa receiving call connect message from the mobile client; and the callcontrol method determining if an answering party is the end user of themobile client based on whether the predefined confirmation message isreceived before the confirmation timer reaches a predetermined answertime.
 24. The enterprise system of claim 23, wherein the call controlmethod further comprises: a bridging function that bridges the mediaconnection between the calling party and the mobile client in responseto detecting the predefined confirmation message in a voice media streamfrom the mobile client, the media connection being bridged through theenterprise system from activation of the confirmation timer until theconfirmation timer reaches the predetermined answer time, and the callcontrol method directly connecting the first call leg with the secondcall leg after the confirmation timer reaches the predetermined answertime.
 25. The enterprise system of claim 24, wherein the call controlmethod further comprises a filter function that is programmed to removethe predefined confirmation message from the voice media stream whilethe media connection is bridged through the enterprise system.
 26. Theenterprise system of claim 22, wherein the call control method furthercomprises anchoring control that is programmed to provide anchor data tothe mobile client to inform that mobile client that the second call legcorresponds to a call that has been anchored in the enterprise.
 27. Theenterprise system of claim 26, wherein the anchoring control isprogrammed to insert predetermined anchor data into at least onepredetermined field of the enterprise call that is being placed to themobile client to indicate that the third party call has been anchored inthe enterprise system.
 28. The enterprise system of claim 22 incombination with the mobile client to provide a communication system,the communication system comprising: wherein the mobile clientcomprises: a processor configured to execute instructions stored inmemory for controlling operation of the mobile client; and the memorycomprising instructions programmed to automatically provide thepredefined confirmation message to the enterprise system in response todetecting that the enterprise call from the enterprise system has beenanswered by the end user at the mobile client.